Into the Storm
by Sleepy Lotus
Summary: You start to steer yourself into the storm, just to see what happens. Just to see if you can win... Jack dares Elizabeth to look deep in her soul, and sometimes the truth is most frightening of all. JackElizabeth
1. Chapter 1

Disclaimer: Don't own it…

PART I

The cool night breeze whispered over Elizabeth's skin, twining in her locks as they danced freely about her. Standing at the railing of the Pearl, she looked out at the dark sea, hands gripping the weather-worn wood with fingers like talons. At long last, they were headed home, back to Port Royal. With every passing league the Pearl cut through the waves, feelings of apprehension brewed more forcefully in her breast.

What for? Wasn't this what she'd always wanted? To marry a good man and settle down in a fine house, to finally start her life? A grand lie, Elizabeth, she told herself. Perhaps domestic bliss had once found itself so keenly in her crosshairs, but now she felt her aim wavering, to different targets more bold.  
There were times, padding across the deck of the Pearl on bare feet in a fashion Will absolutely abhorred, the sun beating down and the wind filling the sails that life seemed so impossibly sweet. The exhilaration of the moment coursed through her veins so forcefully, so intoxicatingly, she wondered if it were even possible for it to be real. For the Pearl is the stuff dreams are made of, wild fantasies of freedom…and so is _he._

_Pirate_ he'd called her, just before she retreated for the longboat with the others. Perhaps it was possible that he knew her soul far better than anyone else; he recognized a kindred spirit. Even after their first adventure with Jack, Will took no notice of the changes in her; the true light of her soul shining through the cracks. No one but Jack pierced her façade of a proper Port Royal lady.

Scarier yet? She may have loved him for it. Which was exactly why she did her best steer clear of the buccaneer on the voyage home. Jack was like rum to her: intoxicating, not always the easiest to tolerate, but always a dizzying ride. She found it hard to think entirely clear with him near; she suspected he realized this.

"Well well, if it ain't me favorite little pirate, who's been avoiding me so skillfully this return voyage."

_Point proved. _Elizabeth turned to see the pirate in question leaning his back against the rail, lips curled in an infuriating smirk.

"Why would I avoid you, Jack?" she asked, not daring to look him in the eye. There were moments she feared that with one more smoldering look he would finally capture her; she would have no choice but to leave Will in pursuit of adventure on the sea with the wiley captain.

"I don't know…there could be a certain social awkwardness to be found in chainin' a man to the mast of 'is beloved ship in lieu of a nasty fate at the tentacles of a kraken, and once again finding yerself face to face with said pirate captain."

Elizabeth raised an eyebrow at Jack's tirade. She kept a cool façade, but secretly she felt uneasy inside. Jack was a man who kept her on her toes; she loved and hated the way she never quite knew what to expect next from the man. It was so opposite from Will, who's actions she could easily predict to a T.

"I suppose I thought if you held a serious grudge, a man of such hot blood would have confronted me before now. It was the best way to save everyone in the end, Jack; I won't apologize for that."

Fearing where this conversation could go, she tried to escape, making to walk away from the pirate. At first sign of this Jack headed her off, trapping her with one arm on either side leaning on the railing. Her heart jumped in her chest, and Elizabeth watched him the way mice watch snakes; fascinated, feeling frozen by an emotion similar to, but not exactly fear. Perhaps she wanted him, but it didn't make it right, or good. Maybe that was the best part of all.

She dared to look into those smoldering dark eyes, which now were so alarmingly close to her own. "Maybe I've forgiven you," he said quietly, "But I can't help but still hold a bit of a grudge."

Unwilling to back down, she rose to the challenge, standing up to her full height once again. She could feel Jack's body just barely touching hers, a line of heat that sent a thrill through her. It felt like déjà vu, whispering above his lips, "Then you haven't really forgiven me, have you Captain?"

He lifted a hand, brushing a stray lock of golden hair from her cheek. That simple touch evoked a shudder that she embarrassingly failed to mask. His smile widened, knowing full well the effect he could have upon her, if she would only sit still. "Perhaps you could persuade me?" he suggested with a raised eyebrow, hovering above lips he so dearly wished to kiss.

"Are you suggesting I purchase your forgiveness with my favors?" she asked with a wry smile. "Because I'm not that kind of woman, Jack Sparrow."

Jack felt an ache within his chest, to pull her to him, to ravish her lips and show her exactly what kind of woman he _knew _she was. His fingers slid into her hair, holding her lightly at the base of her skull. "Pirates don't buy things, love, we take them," he said, pulling her into a passionate kiss that sent tremors down to her core. He hit her with the tenacity of an ocean storm, the waves of his passion crashing over her. She lost herself so thoroughly in Jack's kiss, so engulfed, she felt she might drown in him.

Trembling and overwhelmed, she pushed on his chest, hoping to gasp for some air before he took her under again. He only broke for a moment, swinging her light body around before kissing her again. Elizabeth felt him pushing her; they shuffled backwards at his insistence, until she felt the solid wood of the main mast against her back. Jack melted against her, pushing until she was sure their bodies would meld inextricably. She lost herself in the gale, disoriented and blissfully lost as Jack's hands roamed her body, tangling in her hair, testing the flesh of her curves, his lips tasting her neck.

She felt no cause for alarm when his hand pushed hers down to her side, until a telltale _click _suddenly brought her back to stark reality. Shuddering, she pulled away to look into those black orbs. "What are you doing, Jack?" she demanded, unable to raise her voice above a whisper.

"Doesn't feel too great, does it love? To be tricked by such passionate persuasion?" Even as he spoke, Elizabeth felt the after-shocks running through his body. They both trembled, like leaves in the wind.

"Unchain me, now."

The pirate smiled mischievously, and she fought the urge to kiss him again, biting her bottom lip. "Now now, turn about's fair play, an all. However, where you did this to me with intent to harm, I intend to do some good."

"For whom?" she asked suspiciously, pulling at the chain.

"For you, of course. What kind of man do you think I am?" Elizabeth glared at the pirate, knowing _exactly _what kind of man he was.

"I'll scream," she threatened quietly, leaning in to Jack.

He barely managed to evade taking her lips again, faced with temptation that could kill a man. "To what end? I'm the captain of the ship, and I'm the one with the key. You're not going anywhere, until I says so."

Frustrated, Elizabeth blew air out her nostrils. "And what good is this supposed to do me?" she asked, rattling the chain.

"Incentive, love."

"For what?"

"To be utterly honest with yourself." She raised her eyebrows at this, eyes gone wide. "Scary, I know," he agreed. "So, shall we parley?"

"Even if I'm to be honest with myself, what makes you think I should be honest with you?"

Jack felt extremely satisfied, for the glare she paid him. He would be a liar to pretend it didn't please him to have her on the receiving end of the main mast's shackles. "Well, if you keep kissing me like that, I suppose you won't ever need to say much."

"Jack¾"

He held up a hand. "Fine, if you want to sit here by your onesies to come to terms with the truth as we both know it, I'll let you be."

"Jack!" Astonished, she watched him saunter away to his cabin, with even more cockiness in his step than usual, if it were possible. "Jack!" she called again, but he ignored her, shutting the cabin door quietly behind him.

"Bloody pirate," she muttered, sliding down the mast to sit cross legged. She closed her eyes, deciding to bide her time until either he came back, or someone found her. Will the blacksmith could surely get her out of these irons, she thought. So long as she didn't have to explain to him how she got there.

**A/N: Please review! It's like an honor system…and no one likes the guy who skips out on paying for his pizza…**


	2. Chapter 2

-1**A/N: To all my lovely reviewers, thank you! You're the best!**

PART II

"So, have we reached the necessary revelations yet?" asked a familiar voice. Elizabeth opened her eyes to see Jack standing before her. He happily waved a rum bottle in one hand, the obvious prize from his excursion to his cabin. Not much time had passed at all.

With a heavy sigh, Elizabeth patted the seat next to her, inviting Jack to sit. Where he'd originally planned to sit out of reach, he couldn't resist the invitation to share that line of body heat he loved so dearly with her. The pirate plunked down beside her, offering a swig of rum. Once upon a time, she would have waved it off, but tonight she gripped the neck of the bottle and took a sturdy swill. Jack smiled, nearly a baring of teeth, at the way she delved deeper and deeper into the life of a pirate.

Elizabeth's throat burned and her head spun from imbibing in the foul drink. "You could at least do me the courtesy to tell me just what I'm supposed to be ruminating about," she said, handing the bottle back to Jack.

Smiling like the cat who ate the cream, he took a pull on the bottle of rum. "You can't guess?"

"I'm sure I could, but guessing won't get me out of this," she said, rattling her chain emphatically before Jack.

"No it won't. Only the truth can set you free," he said with a wry smile. Elizabeth watched those lips, and couldn't decide whether she wanted to slap that smirk off his face, or kiss it.

It was as Jack and Elizabeth sat in a standoff of stares that yet another emphatic _click _alarmed Jack. He looked down at his wrist, to see the damned woman had done it again. "Now what did you go and do that for, love?" he asked, not sure whether to laugh or take out his key and unlock it. Best to leave the key hidden until he really needed it, he decided.

She shrugged infuriatingly. "I just like to do it, it seems."

Narrowing his kohl-lined eyes at her, Jack crossed his arms, pulling the chain as he did it. "Fine."

"Very fine. If you would care to take out your key…"

Blasted woman. Jack decided to change the subject, to something that would take the smug right out of her smile. "So, since we're here, I think I might as well tell you you're about to make the most horrible mistake of your life."

"Is that so?" Elizabeth asked, realizing that once again, she was in for it. Even if she agreed, no one likes to be told such things.

"It is so, and I think deep down you agree with me. You can't marry William, love." Jack made an interesting picture, waxing philosophical, with a shackle about his wrist.

"Why? Because you want me to marry you?" she replied acidly, looking off to the star filled sky.

One black eyebrow raised. "I'm not askin' you to marry me."

"You did once."

He shrugged. "Well, that was _before _you fed me to a kraken."

Elizabeth narrowed her eyes at Jack. "One could easily say that after kissing a woman as you just did ten minutes ago, that your motives of saving a poor girl from herself are a bit tainted, Jack."

He smiled wryly, loving the challenge of sparring with her. "And one could just as easily say that after kissing one back so enthusiastically, perhaps you shouldn't be marryin' the man who isn't said kisser."

"And said kisser most probably wants to keep the said kissed. And since _everyone _seems to want to marry the said kissed, what else is she to assume than that's what you bloody want too?" she demanded, exasperated.

Jack held up his hands in a mock surrender. "I did ask you once, and I still would if given the chance, but that's not my point."

Elizabeth blinked, not having expected him to actually _admit _it. It was almost too soon, to feel him so close again without her senses reeling. Shoving down those emotions for the moment, she asked exasperatedly, "What IS your point?"

Jack turned to look down his nose at Elizabeth, suddenly serious. "That never a more disastrous match were made, than you and Will. Either your soul will crush his, or you'll settle down to a boring life and rot inside. Neither sound pleasant to me."

She laughed cynically, rocking her head back against the mast. "Strange, a pirate caring for pleasantry." When Jack did not laugh in turn, Elizabeth fought off a shudder, his eyes boring into her. At that moment she felt he could see straight to her soul. Unable to bear his gaze, she looked down at her chained hand in her lap. Jack watched her quietly, waiting patiently.

Finally, she spoke. "It's not easy, you know. Realizing that just when everything you've ever wanted is at your fingertips, you don't want it anymore. You realize you _need _something else. Something your family nor your fiancee nor any part of your old life can give you." She looked back up to Jack, and could see in his eyes he understood perfectly. Her voice trembled as she went on, a lump forming in her throat as she reached for the deepest truth within her. "You start to want that horizon. Lust after it. You start to steer yourself into the storm, just to see what happens. Just to see if you can _win_."

Jack studied her carefully, feeling so akin to the words she pulled from her soul. He knew at that moment if he couldn't have her, he would die alone. No other woman would do. "Sounds as though you have an answer, love," he said quietly.

"There are no answers, Jack. I'm so confused."

He raised an eyebrow. "And what's so wrong with chasing that horizon?"

"The heart I shall crush on my way there," she answered. "Will is so…good. So pure. I'd rather face a kraken than see such anguish on his face."

"And what about you? Is your soul worth so little? Are you really willing to let yourself rot in the prison of a household, brats pulling at your skirt from every direction?"

She shook her head solemnly, tears now brimming in those lovely brown eyes. "I don't know."

Jack reached to his belt, and startled her by dropping something into her lap. Turning the object over in her hand, she recognized the slick black surface of his special compass. "This is almost like cheating," she mused, running a finger over the smooth surface of the compass.

"It's not cheating. Nothing's more frightening than the truth, at times. I dare you to look."

"This isn't a game," she scolded.

Jack laughed, a harsh sound. "Never said it was. You've got to follow your heart, love. Everyone has a human right to do that. Open it; if you really don't know what you want, it won't tell you. Believe me, I know."

Steadying her shaky hand, Elizabeth clasped the lid, and flipped the contraption open. Both she and Jack held their breath as the needle spun round and round, to the left and to the right, seeming to not want to settle upon any particular point. Just as Elizabeth was about to close it again, certain she knew not her own heart well enough for a compass to read it, the needle lay still.

**In the next 20 seconds you could leave a review, assuring the appearance of the next and final chapter… Don't make me hold it hostage. :)**


	3. Chapter 3

-1A/N: THANKS to all my lovely reviewers! You're the best! This chap's a bit short, but I hope it will satisfy…

PART III

Jack peered at the compass, raising his eyebrows at the results. "Well, that's interesting."

Elizabeth snapped the compass shut. The die was cast.

"What now?" she asked, voice barely above a whisper, turning to look at Jack. He reached up to brush her cheek with fingertips, causing her eyes to flutter shut.

"It's still up to you, love." His heart thundered in his chest, threatening to break through the bone for what he found himself about to say. His fingers trailed down her neck, distracted momentarily, before he brought his attention back up to her eyes. "But if you'll let me, I'll give you that horizon. I'll make it a wedding present."

Elizabeth leaned into his hand at her cheek, feeling a strange sense of resolve. For once, for the first time in a long time, she felt sure of what she was about to do. As Jack pulled her towards him with mere magnetism, fingertips barely touching her jaw, she murmured, "We may never catch that horizon, Jack Sparrow, but I look forward to the adventure."

Jack kissed her urgently once again, but not as a sea gale crashing against her, but the calm afterwards, cool waves of affection washing over her in kisses and caresses. A slow warmth spread throughout her body as he explored her with lips and tongue and fingertips; even whilst shackled to the mast he still managed to maneuver his arm behind her back, pulling her against him. It was as she lifted her arm to caress his face that she found the chain to be restrictive.

"Can we take these off now?" she asked breathily, as Jack kissed the hollow of her neck.

"Only if we're making a hasty retreat to my cabin," he murmured against her skin, tasting her with a light brush of teeth.

Elizabeth gasped, and the prospect of locking herself away from the world for the night in Jack's cabin at that moment sounded divine. "Only if you promise to be a perfect rogue."

The reverberation of Jack's throaty chuckle against her throat sent gooseflesh marching across her skin. "We have an accord, love."

He reached into his vest pocket for the key with his free hand. Elizabeth couldn't help but laugh when his eyes went wide with alarm, finding nothing but air and the fabric of his pocket.

"Bugger."

**Hate it or like it? Please review!**


End file.
